Ritz CRACKERFULS Taste Test Product Review

Disclaimer.....the opinion expressed below is unbiased and mine alone.  I did not receive any product or payment from the manufacturer of said product in exchange for a review. 


 I wanted to do the Keep the Jingle in Your Holidays Kraft Rebate a few weeks ago--the one that is valid from 12/1 through 1/31--under Brother-in-Law's name.  Buy 10 select Kraft/Nabisco/Planters item and get a check for $10 back.  Price Chopper had the appropriate crackers on sale for $2 and with the $1/1 Qs I had, the crackers were $1.  So the 10 boxes cost me $10 and I will get $10 back....free crackers!

One of the crackers valid for this rebate are those Ritz Crackerfuls that came out late last year.  I had yet to try them, so I picked up a few boxes among the 10 boxes of crackers I bought.  I like those little traditional cheese cracker sandwiches & I've heard other people locally rave over these Crackerful things, so I went into this thinking I'd like these.

First off, let's look at the box....

The contents weighs in at 6 ounces.
There are 6 crackers in the box.
That's 6 servings of 1 cracker sandwich each.
Each cracker sandwich is approximately 5" long.

I took a bite......sort of like the cheese crackers I remembered from my youth, but something was off or different.

So I tasted the cracker alone and found that the cracker component of these sandwiches was so SWEET!  Chock full of sugar-like substances according to the ingredient list on the box.
First I noticed the texture of the filling was very different from the traditional sandwiches filling.  This one had the consistency of a combination of marshmallow and the weight of floam--light and grainy with a pastel peach color.

Then I tasted the filling.
It was like having a salt lick in my mouth!
UGH!
Combining the overly sweet cracker with the salt lick filling gives you a classic sweet/salty flavor combination that is very popular and well liked.  But it was not an enjoyable mouth experience. I hardly got ANY cheese flavor, just the salt component.
Ok, maybe a little bit of a chemical cheese flavor like boxed Kraft Macaroni & Cheese.

The box claims these Crackers contain 5g of Whole Grain and Real Cheese.

But I counted THIRTY ingredients on the side panel.  Besides what they tout as ingredients, there was also Sugar, Assorted Oils, Salt, Corn Syrup Solids, High Fructose Corn Syrup, Color Extracts, Artificial Colors, etc.
That's THREE KINDS of SUGARS.
Get out your magnifying glass to see all the ingredients!

And each cracker sandwich is wrapped individually in a coated mylar packaging.  Inside each wrapper the cracker is snuggled inside a white paperboard sleeve.

At least the outer box is 100% recycled paperboard.

And the calorie count is 130 PER Cracker Sandwich.
And 230mg of Salt per Sandwich(10% of your PDVs for sodium in one cracker).

Lastly, the regular suggested retail on a box of this Crackerfuls is $3.49.
6 Crackers.
$3.49.
That's .58¢ per 5" cracker.

I don't think I'll be buying these again.

Thumbs down Nabisco.....

Sluggy

Meal Plan Monday.....January 11th Edition....Using my Food Budget to Stock-Up A Bit

Last Week's Menu Postmortem...

We had about half of the meals as I had planned them.  Some nights we just didn't feel like what was slated and I have so much in my freezer and stockpile that we just substituted something else I already have on hand or we worked on some leftovers.
One dinner that was a last minute substitution was GREAT!  I had a roll of Italian Sausage....not links but a loose sausage meat roll.  This had been hanging out in the freezer door too long so it had to get used.  What I did was brown and crumble the meat, then I boiled a box of Whole Wheat Penne Pasta and made a pot of Spaghetti Sauce from scratch and added the sausage meat to that.  Dump the Penne and the Sauce into a casserole and top with Shredded Mozzarella.  Bake in a 350 degree oven for 45 minutes.  Add a salad and you've got a tasty, hearty, cold weather beater dinner!  And better still, no money was spent this week on it.

I've moved a few of the meals to this week, and adjusted my plan to accomodate the relative that is visiting us this week.

Here's what I will be serving our family of 6 this Week.....

MONDAY--Fried Calamari(freezer), Garlic Shells in Butter Sauce(stockpile), Carrots(freezer)
TUESDAY--Taking the Relative out for Dinner
WEDNESDAY--Boston Baked Beans(stockpile),Cornbread(stockpile)
THURSDAY--Pork Ragu(stockpile/freezer) Garlic Bread, Creamed Spinach(freezer)
FRIDAY--Chicken Alfredo with Vegetables(freezer/leftover/stockpile)
SATURDAY--Leftovers-only 2 family members home for dinner
SUNDAY--Roast Chicken, Roast Veggies, Mashed Potatoes(freezer/stockpile)
SNACKS/DESSERTS--Pineapple(stockpile), Applesauce(stockpile), Brownies(stockpile), Birthday Cake(stockpile)

Last week I spent $88.44 on food/toiletries....$73.05 at Weis, $7.26 at Rite-Aid, $7.13 at Carone's and $1.00 at CVS.
$32.88 that was spent, was for food/toiletry needs that were used in that week.  $55.56 was in future needs/wants.  About half of that $55.56 was on meat which I got very inexpensively.

After assorted rebates on the goods purchased(naked juice, kraft/planters nuts, full price rebate on shampoo, various items for Rite-Aid Single Check Rebate)amounting to $37.99, my OOP spending for the week is $50.45.

Food Waste Report....1 small cube of cheese(about 1"x 1"x1/2" thick)that wasn't worth scraping the mold off of and 1 slice of bread(a heel)that went moldy too.

Since I bought Molasses last week, this week's menu only requires milk, sliced cheese(for #2 son's back up meal of choice-grilled cheese)and bread stock-up. I do want to stock-up on more Progresso Soup on sale this week at Weis as well as more Naked Juice to do the rebate for BIL.
$25 should do it for weekly needs so I'll reserve the other $37.50 of the food budget for stock-ups if I find something worth getting at a good price.

I think that next week, after #1 son goes back to college and the relative leaves, I'm going to have a NO Grocery Store Shopping Week.  I hope Weis doesn't decide to do a rare good Catalina Deal next week!lolol

Check out ORGANIZING JUNKIE to see what other Home Cooks are serving this week.

Sluggy

Did Someone Say More Cowbell? The Week I Contracted Rite-Aid FEVER!

I am a BIG FAN of Christopher Walken.
Have been for years!

As Christopher might say....
"I got a fever, and the only prescription is more Rite-Aid!"

After having made TEN TRIPS to Rite-Aid in 1 week, it's true....I'm a bonafide nut case!

Or.....
Maybe with the sales, the Manu. Qs, the weekly flyer Qs, the IPQs, the AdPerk IPQs, the Wellness Qs & the Game Of Life Qs, it was just the alignment of the planets,er....the Qs, to make this past week the Couponers Dream shopping opportunity at Rite-Aid.

So by Friday, I had already made 5 trips to Rite-Aid and finished my Kraft/Planters Nut Rebate Mission.
But I still had good Qs to use and things on sale that I wanted to buy. Plus some items the teens had requested. ;-)
I had some $3 off $15 purchase Wellness Qs and some $5 off $20 purchase AdPerks Qs left so I was off to do more transactions.

1 x Roll of Xmas Paper 75% off=$1.24
  -$1 any Seasonal Item over $1 Wellness CRT Q=$.24

1 x 2 Pack Roll of Xmas Paper 75% off=$1.49  *not pictured, already given away

   -$1 any Seasonal Item over $1 Wellness CRT Q=$.49

2 x Got2B Hair Gel Stuff BOGO=$6.49   
   -2 x $3=$6 Got2B Hair Product AdPerks IPQs=$.49

1 x OralB ToothBrush Refills on sale=$5.99 
  -$3/1 Oral B ManuQ + $1 any Oral Care Wellness IPQ($4 total)=$1.99

1 x Maybelline Mascara 40% off=$3.11 
  -$2 any Beauty Product over $2 Wellness IPQ=$1.11

1 x NYC Lip Gloss=$2.99   
   -$2 any Beauty Product over $2 Wellness IPQ=$.99


Total Before Coupons....$21.31
Total of Coupons...$16.00+$5 off $25 Purchase AdPerks Q=$21.00
 *I had a $1 Maybelline AdPerks Q but it would have put me over my preQ total si I didn't use it. I miscalculated and flaked out at the register. ugh  If I had figured correctly I could have gotten something small(at least 69¢ worth)and paid even less than 33¢.  But all in all, paying 33¢ isn't so bad.lolol


$21.31-$21.00=$.31+$.02tax=$.33 OOP
Rebates qualified for.....$2 Maybelline Mascara, $1 NYC Cosmetic=$3.00


$.33-$3.00=$2.67 Moneymaker!

Transaction #2


1 x Riceworks Chips on sale=$1.99 
   -$.50 any Snack Item over $.50 Wellness IPQ=$1.49

1 x Dove Xmas Candy 75% off=$1.24
   -$1 off any Seasonal Item over $1 Wellness CRT Q=$.24

2 x Nature's Bounty Vitamin C Bogo=$9.99

   -2 x $2 Any Vitamin over $2 Wellness IPQ+2 x $1/1 AdPerks Nature's Bounty IPQ+2 x $1/1     Nature's Bounty ManuQ($8 total)=$1.99

1 x Maybelline Mascara 40% off=$3.11 
   -$2 off Any Beauty Product over $2 Wellness IPQ+$1 Maybelline AdPerks IPQ($3 total)=$.11


Total Before Coupons....$16.33
Total of Coupons....$12.50+$3 off $15 Purchase Wellness IPQ=$15.50

$16.33-$15.50=$.83 OOP
Rebates qualified for.....$2 Maybelline Mascara=$2.00


$.83-$2.00=$1.17 Moneymaker!
 

Transaction #3


1 x Tostitos Chips on sale=$3.00
   -$.50 any Snack Item over $.50 Wellness IPQ+$1 Tostitos AdPerks IPQ($1.50 total)=$1.50

1 x Rite-Aid Lotion=$2.00
   -$2 off any Skin Care Item over $2 Wellness Q+$.25 off Rite-Aid Lotion GOL Q= -$.25

2 x Rolaids=$9.98

   -2 x $2 Rolaid In-Ad Q+$4/2 Rolaids ManuQ($8 total)=$1.98

1 x OralB Toothbrush Refills on sale=$5.99

   -$3/1 OralB Refills ManuQ+$1 off any Oral Care Wellness Q($4 total)=$1.99


Total Before Coupons....$20.97
Total of Coupons....$15.75+$5 off $20 Purchase Wellness IPQ=$20.75


$20.97-$20.75=$.22 OOP

No Rebates qualified for in this transaction.

Transaction #4


2 x Chex Mix BOGO sale=$2.99

   -$1/2 Chex Mix Manu Q+$1/2 AdPerks Chex Mix IPQ($2.00 total)=$1.00

1 x Rite-Aid Lotion=$2.00

   -$2 off any Skin Care Item over $2+$.25 Rite-Aid Lotion GOL Q($2.25)= -$.25

2 x Natrol Acai BOGO sale=$13.99
   -2 x $2 Any Vitamin over $2 Wellness IPQ+2 x $3/1 Natrol Item IPQ($10 total)=$3.99
1 x 3Musketeers Bar on sale=$.50

2 x Nivea Lip Care BOGO Sale=$3.99

   -BOGO ManuQ($3.99)=$.00


Total Before Coupons....$23.47
Total of Coupons....$18.24+$5 off $20 Purchase Wellness IPQ=$23.24


$23.47-$23.24=$.23 OOP

Rebates qualified for.....the Natrol Acai put me over $30 in purchases this month for the WELLNESS Rebate, which is a $5 Rite-Aid Gift Card.



$.23 OOP & get a $5 Gift Card

Transaction #5


2 x Stay Free Pads BOGO Sale=$3.99
   -Stay Free Bogo ManuQ=$.00

2 x GE Reveal Lightbulbs on sale $2=$4.00

   -$1.50/1 ManuQ +1 x $1/1 ManuQ($2.50 total)=$1.50

2 x Planters Cashews BOGO Sale=$5.99

   -2 x $.50 Any Snack Item over $.50+$1/2 Planters Nuts ManuQ($2 total)=$3.99

1 x NYC Lip Gloss=$2.99

   -$2 off Any Beauty Product over $2 Wellness IPQ=$.99


Total Before Coupons....$16.97
Total of Coupons....$10.49+$3 off $15 Purchase Wellness IPQ=$13.49


$16.97-$13.49=$3.48 OOP

Rebates qualified for.....$2 GE +$1 NYC Cosmetic=$3.00



$3.48-$3.00 Rebates=$.48 OOP




1/9/10  Totals
OOP....$5.09
Rebates...$8.00+$5 Gift Card

Today was a $2.91 Moneymaker.
Value of Items Bought...$178.97 
Savings of 100%+



JANUARY TOTALS
OOP (before Rebates)....$20.14
Value of Items Bought....$543.15
Savings of.....96.29%


SCR qualified for.....$50.00

Kraft Rebate qualified for at Rite-Aid...$10.00
Game of Life game Winnings....$2.00
Gift Cards.....$5

Total Gains for January...$62.00+$5 GC



$20.14-$62.00=$41.86 MONEYMAKER for the Month!

OOOh baby...I'm burning up in here!!

Sluggy 

Almost Free NAKED JUICE at WEIS MARKETS this Week!

Get your hiney over to Weis Markets this week(before the sale week ends on Wednesday night).
The 15.2 oz. NAKED JUICE bottles are on sale BOGO, so you get 2 for $2.99.
Go print this $1/1 Coupon HERE.  You can print it twice by hitting your back button.  If you can use a second computer, go print out 4 of the coupons.

Now go to Weis and buy 10 bottles, any flavor you like.
10 bottle with the BOGO sale will cost you $14.95.
Use 4 of the $1/1 Coupons and pay $10.95 OOP.

Now save your receipt and go HERE and download a copy of a Naked Juice Rebate Form.
Send in the information they need and the form and you will get back $10 on your purchase of 10 bottles.

$10.95 you spent - $10 Rebate=$.95 OOP for 10 Juices!

That's what I did today! ;-)
Of course, since my Weis won't take IPQs, I had to go to a different Weis outside of Teeny Tiny Town to get in on this deal.

Sluggy

Weis Deals this Week...1/7-1/13 What is Worth Buying?

Here are the Best Deals using coupons at Weis this week.  Their Sales ad runs until Wednesday night(will change over to Sunday to Saturday ad in a week or so).

Frankly, not as much of a snoozfest this week as last....MHO folks.lol

BEST DEALS(=Free or almost Free)

Tony's Single Serve Pizzas $1.00
--use the $.50/1 ManuQ(12/13SS insert)and if your Weis doubles pay ZERO...if you can find them.  My store is always wiped out when this is free after Q.

Yo-Plait or Yo-Plus Yogurt $1.50 each
--use the $1/1 ManuQ(1/3GM insert)and pay $.50 a pack(works out to .125¢ a cup)

Healthy Choice Soups $1.00
--use the $.75/2 ManuQ(1/3 SS2 insert)and if your Weis doubles pay $.50 a can or less if the store doubles fully

Purina Whisker Lickin's $1.00
--use the $1/2 ManuQ(11/15 SS insert)and pay $.50 a bag

Chapstick Lip Balm $1.00
--use the $.50/2 ManuQ(12/13 SS insert)and if your Weis doubles and they have the MEDICATED type, pay $.50 each when you buy 2

GOOD DEALS(=Cheap)

Green Giant boxed Veggies  $1.00
--use the $.60/3 ManuQ(11/15 GM insert-hurry it expires on Sat!)and pay $.67 a box if your store doubles up to $1(or less if they double fully)

Progresso Soup Classic varieties  $1.00
--use the $1/4 ManuQ(various ones out there) and pay $.75 a can

Post Cereals(selected varieties) 2 for $3 MUST BUY TWO
--use the $1/2 ManuQ(12/6 SS insert)if your store has the varieties listed on the Q in this sale  and pay $1 per box

Eggs $1.19 per dozen
--use the Egg Council BOGO IPQ(if you printed back when it was available) and pay .595¢ per dozen

Healthy Choice Frozen Dinners  $2.50 each
--use the IPQ for $5/5 if still available HERE and pay $1.50 per Dinner  You do need to buy 5 however to use this Q.


PRODUCE DEALS

Romaine is $.99lb.  That's $1.50 off!  Good Deal.

Apples are $.69lb.  That's a Decent Deal.


MEAT DEALS

Perdue  40% OFF
--there is a $.75/1 Q on Perdue Shortcuts  due out this Sunday 1/10.  I'd hold off buying the Perdue until after Sunday.  Price...??

OTHER MEAT
Since meat coupons are so hard to come by, I recommend shopping the meat dept. on the night before or the morning after the Ad changeover.  This is when you are more likely to find discounted meat packs, either marked down or with store $x off stickers on them or if you hit it lucky with BOTH discounts!  I went to Weis on Wed. evening to use my Smart Taste Ronzoni Qs this week and found in the meat dept. a Pork Loin Roast marked about 50% off after store coupon, 80% Ground Beef for $1.72lb. after discount store coupon and 2 HUGE Roaster Chickens that had been BOGO that week, each with a $3Off Store Coupon on them.  And someone had NOT removed the BOGO stickers so I got 1 FREE and basically $6 off the other one.  Almost 14lbs. of Roasters for just over $5...that's $.39 a lb.!


CATALINA DEAL
Nothing.

Just.

Plain.

Sad.

 

OTHER DEALS

I do want to mention that Weis has NAKED JUICE on BOGO this week.  The regular price there is $2.99 a bottle.
Naked Juice has a $10 MIR available until 2/1/10.  Get the form Here.  Buy 10 bottles, Get $10 back.  If you were to buy them at Weis this week, you would pay $14.95 and after the rebate be OOP $4.95 on 10 bottles.
I think you might be able to do better elsewhere, but maybe not before 2/1.  I am conflicted on paying $4.95 for these.
Anybody out there ever try this stuff?  Let me know if it's worth drinking, ok?


So what are you or did you get this week at Weis?  Any deals there you couldn't pass up?
Leave a comment and let us know what ya found!

Sluggy

My 2010 Savings Goals

Ok, so it's a new year and I need a new set of Savings Goals for it.
But which goals.....and how much?

First, where we stand financially.

We have no mortgage, so no mortgage to pay toward or pay off.  We did that in March of 2006. 8-))
We have no car loans, so nothing to pay toward or pay off there either. 8-)
We have a credit card but it's paid off every month.  Nothing is put on it unless it can be paid that billing cycle.  We don't fritter the money away on making banks richer.  ;-)
We have a fully funded 6 month Emergency Fund(the reason we don't have to put emergency purchases on the credit card), so we don't need to throw money into that fund.  We could put some extra into that though and make it a 9 month or 1 year EF I suppose.

There are 3 Savings Goals I do see we should fund.

First is throwing additional money into the Kid's College Fund.  We have a plan that will allow us to Cash Flow each child's undergraduate college career(4 years to complete the degree). We have told each of them how much they are getting from us and they need to find a school that can be paid for with it or if they want to go somewhere more expensive, they need to come up with the money for the difference through either grants, scholarships, work study, loans or working while attending school.
Graduate school?....that's on their dime, not ours.
We had ESAs for each child but when the stock market fell, those took a hit.  I am hopeful they will recover enough in time before we need the cash so that I can take the money out without a net loss.
We had a cash flow plan with this College Fund but we may come up a bit short between how we are funding it and the exploding costs of schooling.  At any rate, this Fund could use a bit more moolah.

Second we are going to have to replace a car very soon.  Not a new car but a 'new to us' car.  And we will pay cash of course.

Third is paying for a new heating system for our house.  This house was built in the late 1980's.  At the time, the builder got a tax incentive to put a thermal storage heating unit in his homes here.  The electric company had a special lower off-peak/on-peak rate for these systems that helped homeowners have a lower electric bill than the regular electric customers.
This year, the electric company is phasing out this special rate(thank you cap and trade) and in 2011, they are doing away with it completely.  Also, these thermal storage systems were only expected to last 20-30 yrs.  2 of our heating receptables have already died, one at the beginning of last winter and the other at the end of it.  Replacing 1 electric thermal unit was in the ballpark of 5 Thousand Dollars!  There are 5 in the house, along with regular baseboard electrical units in the smaller rooms.   It makes no sense to replace the dead units since the special rate is going away and we'll be a totally electric home with incredibly high electric rates after this year.
So we need a new heating system before next fall when the heat gets turned on again!
Replacing your heating system is NOT cheap....especially if you aren't set up for gas and you have no ductwork in your house already.
Ugh.

I had wanted to put solar panels on the house but that will have to wait as the heating system is more critical.  And heating with solar just wouldn't be realistic at this location or within our financial scope.
At this point I am leaning toward a GeoThermal Heating System.  We may have a problem however, since you need to excavate and lay underground piping next to your house for this type of system and we have buried/underground utility lines here on the property.  We may not have the room for the pipes.

Since I was able to sock away $23K+ last year, I don't feel I should settle for less than that this year.
Tentatively, I am going to set a $30K Savings Goal for 2010.
That's $2500 a month.
I still need to go through the bills for last year and get some final numbers together so I can set a realistic Budget.
Then I need to research more on the heating system options and get some estimates.  How much this bill will cost may help determine what the Savings Goal will be for this year.....or then again, it might not.lol

More later on the Savings Goals after I get a final Budget together.
Have you set your family Budget for the year yet?
Do you have any savings goals for 2010?
Do you have a plan to reach those goals?
Please leave a comment and tell us!
 
Sluggy

Nuts to You!.....Part IV.....The End of the Quest

Just needing 3 cans of Planters Nuts and the Rite-Aid a mere 2.5 miles away, I trucked up after dinner to finish my mission for 10 Cans of Planters so I can send for the $10 Rebate.

2 x Planters Cashews on sale BOGO=$5.99
1 x Planters Nutrition nuts on sale=$3.49
1 x Tylenol Cold on sale=$5.99
1 x M5Magnum Razor Cartridges on sale=$5.00
2 x Nivea Lip Care on sale BOGO=$3.99
1 x Dove Xmas Candy clearance 75% off=$1.24
SubTotal.....$25.70

Coupons Used
1 x $5 off $25 Purchase AdPerks/Rite-Aid IPQ=$5.00
1 x $1/2 Planters Nuts ManuQ=$1.00
2 x $.50/1 Any Snack Item over $.50 Wellness IPQ=$1.00
1 x $1/1 Planters Nutrition ManuQ=$1.00
1 x $.50/1 Any Snack Item over $.50 Wellness IPQ=$.50
1 x $1/1 Tylenol Cold ManuQ=$1.00
1 x $2/1 Any OTC Cough or Cold Med over $2 Wellness CRT printed Q=$2.00
1 x $3/1 M5Magnum Razor Cartridges ManuQ from last razor purchase package=$3.00
1 x $1/1 M5Magnum Rite-Aid In-Ad Coupon=$1.00
1 x $1/1 Any Shaving Item over $1 Wellness CRT printed Q=$1.00
1 x BOGO Nivea Lip Care ManuQ=$3.99
2 x $2/1 Any Skin Care Item over $2 Wellness IPQ=$4.00
1 x $1/1 Seasonal Item over $1 Wellness CRT printed Q=$1.00
Coupon Total.....$25.49

$25.70-$25.49=$.21 OOP

SCRebates qualified for....
$3.00 Tylenol Cold (will send for this one under my BIL's account)

$.21 OOP-$3.00 Rebate=$2.79 MONEYMAKER!

Cans of Nuts for MIR=10   DONE!
Cans left to buy=0

OOP on 4 Nut transactions=$2.05
#1....$1.04
#2....$.45
#3....$.35
#4....$.21


Rebates qualified for on 4 Nut transactions=$11.00 (Listerine,Tylenol Cold x2,Wet n' Wild)

OOP AFTER Rebates= NEGATIVE $8.95
Add in the $2 Instant Winner Game Ticket and Rite is paying me $10.95 to take the products in my last 4 transactions home.




Total thus far for January
OOP for January(before Rebates)....$15.05

SCRebates qualified for.....$42.00 
Kraft Rebate qualified for at Rite-Aid...$10.00 
Game of Life Winnings....$2.00
Total Gains for January....$54.00

$15.05-$54.00=$38.95 MONEYMAKER!



Value of Items bought in January.....$364.18
Savings of 100%+


I'm truly feeling the Rite-Aid love this month!

Sluggy